Parrot Coaster

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When a park opens it needs a signature roller coaster to get started. The Parrot Coaster at Chimelong Ocean Kingdom is that coaster. Chimelong Ocean Kingdom is part of a larger resort complex that aims to become the “Orlando” of China. It opened in 2014 with only two other roller coasters both are Mack water coaster, a handful of other amusement flat rides, and the world’s largest aquarium. The aquarium itself houses many animal attractions and encounters. Even though this park is still young and is a work in progress in 2015 they hosted 7.5 million visitors, an amazing figure.The Parrot Coaster is a wing coaster designed by Bolliger and Mabillard, and was originally called Flying Over The Rainforest however the name was changed after two months. The Parrot Coaster is the first wing coaster built in Asia, and it is the longest and fastest of its type. Chimelong didn’t just invest in a massive wing coaster they also built a lush environment for the coaster to interact with complete with an artificial river system, two trenches with tunnels, and in the center of the action are two larger than life trees with faces moulded into them and parrots perched on its limbs. The trains are incredibly detailed as well to carry the parrot theme. On a wing coaster each car on the train seats four, with two on each side. The rider’s perspective is level with the track on each side and their paths parallels the track instead of being directly above or below the track. The lead car has the body and head of a parrot with the structure holding the seats on the wings looking like wings. Each subsequent row continues this look of feathered wings complete with a tail on the last car.The ride experience starts with a slow U-turn out of the station to face the massive 164.1 foot tall lift hill. The climb is slow and builds suspense as riders take in their surroundings. The ride experience is slightly different on the right and left side as one wing will tip up while the other one goes down as it navigates the different elements. As the train crests the lift hill the coaster flies down the first drop reaching its maximum speed of 67.1 MPH. The coaster roars down close to the ground buzzing the foliage and river, and then back up towards the sky and into the dive loop giving riders a brief upside down view of the lagoon. The coaster continues its dive back down gathering speed and threading between the support structure and the coaster enters the horseshoe turnaround. The coaster dives down and skimms the river again before hitting the zero-G roll. The coaster enters an S-turn dipping in each direction as it climbs up to the MCBR. The train does a straight dive into a dark tunnel and the train banks hard to the right. The train bursts into the light and climbs to the left, before turning to the right between the supports, followed by a slow in-line twist. The train banks gently to the right and descends into a second tunnel. As the train approaches the tunnel exit it snaps to the left. As it goes around the sweeping left hand turn it immediately enters the final brake run as the track straightens out. The train does a final U-turn and it reenters the station and the ride concludes its 4192.9 foot journey. The Parrot coaster is a solid addition to the growing roster of wing coasters worldwide claiming two world records for the type as the fastest and longest in the world.​